ACSD weighs size of its budget increase

The Addison Central School District board on Monday received an initial draft of a fiscal year 2027 PreK-12 budget of $52.9 million that reflects a 4.9% increase in overall spending and an estimated 3.7% increase in education taxes.

ACSD Superintendent Wendy Baker says the school board’s decision to merge the two elementary schools is final.

Proposed improvements to the crowded middle school building include expansions to the gym, library, kitchen and cafeteria, along with new classrooms and common space.

The ACSD board on Monday voted 8-1 in favor of a plan to blend Shoreham’s kindergarten through 5th-grade students into Bridport Central School beginning next fall, and convert Shoreham Elementary School into a district Pre-K hub.

The ACSD board on Monday agreed to initiate the formal closing of Ripton Elementary School, a move that will still require a positive vote by district voters on Town Meeting Day.

During a Tuesday forum about Act 73, ACSD Superintendent Wendy Baker described the changing education policy landscape that could shape Addison County schools.

The numbers presented to the ACSD board on Monday were a very tentative, birds-eye view of Middlebury Union High School’s repair, maintenance and upgrade needs.

The ACSD board on Monday conducted its first review of a plan to educate both the Shoreham and Bridport K-5 student populations at Bridport Central School beginning next fall.

Join State Rep. Peter Conlon (Addison-2) and Wendy Baker, Addison Central School District superintendent, to discuss Act 73 school redistricting on Tuesday, Nov. 18.

The ACSD board is scheduled to vote on a proposal to serve the K-5 populations of both Bridport and Shoreham at Bridport Central School, starting in the fall of 2026.

The ACSD board will vote on whether to initiate an official closure for RES. If successful, that process would allow the town to buy back the building for $1.

Residents of Bridport, Cornwall, Middlebury, Ripton, Salisbury, Shoreham and Weybridge are being asked to weigh in on potential changes to a policy that could allow more “school choice” within the ACSD.

School boards are weighing in on the future of education in Vermont.

An architectural firm working with ACSD has suggested $20.8 million in upgrades to Middlebury’s Mary Hogan Elementary.

District leaders are crafting a FY2027 school budget amidst inflation, rising health care premiums and a lack of surplus to apply to the bottom line.